Second Chances
by Acacia Eastbramble
Summary: He knew it was a secret but this time it was different. He didn't mean to tell her. But it was like she already knew. He didn't know how but he suddenly felt connected to her it was his fault she got tangled up in this mess and he was going to get her out
1. A Chance Meeting

Mkay so this is my first Twilight fic. I read all three of the books this week and loved them so much I read them again then decided to write a story about them! So anyway, here's the first chapter of Second Chances! Hope you like it!

Disclaimer: Don't own Twilight, wish I did, end of story.

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I was lying in the middle of my usual clearing when I heard a faint rustling in the bushes and then I heard whatever it was enter the clearing from my right hand side. I didn't have to open my eyes to know that it was big and probably canine judging by the frantic panting. I didn't think there were wolves this close into town so I clenched my eyes and steeled myself for impact as I heard the beast move toward me. When no attack came I slowly opened my eyes and looked around the clearing, trying not to make any sudden movements. I saw the great wolf pacing around the clearing with a slight limp and when I was sure it wasn't looking at me I quickly sat up; the large auburn wolf was easily three or four times the size of a normal wolf.

It turned back toward me and cocked its head at me; its deep black eyes seemed much too intelligent for a wolf and this instinctively worried me. My fear instantly dissolved when it whimpered pitifully and stared at me with pained eyes. My first assumption was that it was injured because it was limping, but I didn't know what I could do about that. But all of my predator knowledge told me that if an animal is injured it can't hunt and therefore will be hungry and since the wolf didn't seem to be interested in eating me I figured it wouldn't hurt to give it part of my picnic.

I reached into the small ice chest I'd brought and pulled out one of the over stuffed turkey sandwiches; at this point I was glad I always seemed to make too much food and always had leftovers. Without thinking I pulled out a plate, placed the sandwich on it and set it down on the ground and backed a couple of yards away. The wolf cautiously limped forward and ate the sandwich. When it looked back at me its eyes seemed to convey gratitude although not satisfaction.

The thought occurred to me that an animal this large needed more to eat than a turkey sandwich so I pulled out the other turkey sandwich, the potato salad, the pigs in a blanket and various fruits out of the ice chest. I put them on plates and laid them out and backed away again.

"I know your probably won't like the fruits and salad but it's all I've got and you look hungry," I said and then I felt a tad silly for talking to a potentially dangerous animal. "Wow I need to get some friends."

I couldn't bridle my curiosity any longer; while the massive wolf was eating I cautiously stepped toward it. Its back was facing me so I made it up to its side and slowly reached out and touched the beautiful auburn fur; it was soft. The wolf immediately whipped around and latched onto my hand. I stifled a scream and clenched my eyes shut as the pain started to race through my body.

"That's okay. It's not that bad. I shouldn't have done that," I said shakily as I opened one eye and looked at the wolf who was eyeing me warily. Much to my surprise it let go. Its head perked up and the hackles along its back began to bristle as it stared off into the dark forest. It growled viciously as a small army of men with rifles came into the clearing.

"Little lady, I think you should step away from that monster before it kills you," one of the men said as he pointed to gun at the wolf.

"No," I said as I stood in front of the wolf and spread my arms wide in an attempt to become a human shield, "He isn't dangerous, he's just scared and hungry. I bet it's your fault too. Just leave him alone; he hasn't done any harm."

"Then what's that bite on your hand?" another man asked.

"It was an accident, I snuck up on him," I argued as I shook my head vigorously.

"I'm going to have to insist that you move, missy. This animal is dangerous and should be disposed of," the first man said.

"He's got just as much right to live than any of us do; leave him be."

"If you don't move then I'm going to shoot and it won't be my fault if you get shot; please move miss," the first man pleaded. I shook my head and widened my stance. "I'm sorry, miss."

He raised his rifle and aimed at the wolf's front leg and fired. The bullet grazed my shoulder but didn't hit the wolf; somehow the wolf was now in front of me, snarling and snapping at the now frantic hunters. They struggled to compose themselves enough to get off a shot.

"Go! Run!" I yelled at the wolf as I clutched my shoulder. I cocked its head at me and crouched down. Somehow I was able to read the message in his eyes. "You want me to do what?" He simply remained in his position in obstinacy. "Oh fine." And with that I climbed clumsily onto the wolf's back and he was off like a light, leaving the hunters to shoot at the treed behind where we'd stood.

The wolf was impossibly fast and surprisingly agile for his size suddenly he stopped and we were atop a small stone hill with a cave that was obscured by a rock face. The wolf knelt and allowed me to jump off before it disappeared into the cave. I followed cautiously; I still didn't know just how tolerant this wolf was.

The cave was barren except for a few rocks and boulders; I saw the wolf resting peacefully in the back corner of the cave and I decided that it was probably better not to attempt to get too close so I sat down in the center of the cave and looked out at the scenery.

It was starting to get dark; I pulled out my cell phone and checked the time. 7:30. Much too late to be out in the wilderness with an oversized wolf. But then again, no one was going to come looking for me. Hardly anyone saw me outside of school so people wouldn't notice my absence until Monday, maybe even Tuesday or Wednesday. Oh well, this wolf seemed to have no intention of eating me.

A breeze blew through the cave and I shivered. It was weird how a cold breeze bothered me but a huge predator with razor sharp teeth didn't. I heard a quiet padding toward me then felt warmth radiate from behind me; I was almost afraid to look back. Almost. When I turned my head I saw the wolf lounging casually behind me; a deep rumble reverberated through his throat and I wondered if I had done something wrong. I quickly turned back around and was simply grateful for the warmth that came off his body.

After a few moments he rested his head on his paws and closed his eyes, presumably asleep. Another few minutes passed and I couldn't restrain myself any longer, I reached out and was about to stroke the mighty wolf's head when another rumble echoed through his throat; his eyes flickered open and briefly I held his gaze and then my outstretched hand met something warm and I forced myself to look. The wolf had raised its head into my hand. I started aimlessly stroking the soft fur on its neck and it closed its eyes again in content.

This was the oddest wolf I had ever come across, but then again I didn't come across many wolves at all so that wasn't saying much. He was oddly human for a wolf, if that makes sense. Another half hour passed and the sun had almost set; I could hardly see anything. I was looking out the cave entrance trying to let my eyes adjust to the darkness when I suddenly picked out a pair of red eyes watching me. Either the creature had extremely large eyes or it was very close; I was hoping for the large eyes option but luck wasn't on my side today.

The eyes grew closer and finally I was able to see the silhouette of the creature. It was a man. That couldn't be possible. Men didn't have red, glowing eyes, nor did their skin sparkle in the sunlight. I was paralyzed by fear; what was this thing? The wolf suddenly stood and growled at the creature, baring his teeth and bristling all over. If he was worried about this man then I certainly should be.

The man reached the edge of the cave and his skin ceased to sparkle; he smiled maliciously showing his sharp dagger-like teeth. The wolf stepped over me so that his right front leg was in front of me and his others behind me.

It happened before I saw a thing; the man had backhanded the wolf and sent it flying into the cave wall where it crumpled to the floor. It was then that I realized what I was witnessing, what this man was. He wasn't a man; he was a vampire. From the little I knew about vampires I was already sure that I would rather be somewhere else. My concern for the wolf overruled my judgment and I ran toward the unconscious wolf. Before I could go a yard, he was in front of me, red eyes gleaming with blood lust. I stepped back in fear and covered my throat.

I tripped over a rock and landed on my back. Now the vampire was looming over me menacingly with arms outstretched. Though I was paralyzed with fear, I couldn't help but notice how gorgeous he was, how perfect his features were. Then a snarl erupted from the other side of the cave and the wolf jumped on the vampire, ripping it apart; the vampire's pained shrieks filled the cave as he was dismembered.

When I finally stood to look at the damage, the wolf was standing over the several pieces of vampire; he seemed to be considering something then he turned to me and ran behind one of the large boulders. This behavior confused me, why would he be frightened of me now? There was some shuffling and a boy ran out from behind the boulder wearing only cut off jeans; he was carrying a lighter.

"Can you run out and grab some dead leaves or pine needles or something?" he asked frantically as he kicked the pieces of vampire away from each other.

"Um, sure," I replied oddly as I ran out of the cave and grabbed the first pile of dead foliage I could find; it was a good thing there was a lot of pines around Darrington. I ran back into the cave with an armful of pine needles and leaves.

"Here, put them on the body," the young man ordered. I did as I was told and he quickly knelt down and lit the pile of tinder and flesh on fire. "Now come on, we have to get out of here before the smoke fills the cave," he said as he grabbed my arm and dragged me out of the cave.

We walked for awhile in silence, he had let go of my arm and I was just wordlessly following him. I had taken the lack of conversation as a chance to observe him. He was tall, very tall, well over six feet tall, his black hair was disheveled and shaggy so that it partially covered his almost black eyes, he had deep russet skin over a toned well framed body. I was keenly aware of the fact that we were walking deeper into the forest rather than out of it. Finally he stopped suddenly and turned toward me.

"Aren't you going to demand to know what happened back there?" he asked as he gestured back in the direction of the cave.

"No, I figured if you were going to tell me, you would," I answered meekly.

"Oh, well then… Um, that was a vampire," he explained awkwardly, as if he expected me to think he was half crazy.

"I gleaned that much," I said as I gave him a how-stupid-do-you-think-I-am look, "And the fact that you morph into a wolf, which I guess would make you a werewolf."

"Yeah, that's pretty much it," he said with a deep breath and a nod, "So…"

"And I'm not supposed to know, I got that much from your indecision," I added, "So what do you do with people who find out your secret?"

"Um… Well you see, I don't really know. No one's ever just found out. I guess I have to take you back to the pack," he replied with a shrug.

"Okay."

"Don't you need to call someone and tell them you aren't coming back?"

"Nope."

"What about your parents?"

"Aren't around anymore; I'm on my own."

"Oh."

"So where is the pack?" I asked as I stepped over a fern and proceeded to follow him again.

"La Push," he answered. Then there was silence for a few moments. "What's your name?"

"Samantha Russell, yours?" I asked as I continued to trudge along behind him.

"Jacob Black," he answered without looking up, "You can call me Jake if you want."

"Then you can call me Sam, most people do," I replied as I climbed over a log that Jacob had just stepped over.

"Well, no matter the circumstances, it's nice to meet you Sam."

"You too, Jake."

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A/n: So if you liked it: review it and tell me why! If you didn't like it: review it and tell me why! Please, please, please! Thank you love you people who review!


	2. Can We Keep Her?

**A/N: Woot! Chapter Two! Certain people need to review... :hint hint, wink wink: I love reviews and for my friends who review over text message, would it kill you to review over this instead? PRETTY PRETTY PLEASE?? Pretty please with Edward on top? Anyway R&R!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight, but I do own Sam! Sam Russell that is...**

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**Recap:**

_"Well, no matter the circumstances, it's nice to meet you Sam."_

_"You too, Jake."_

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We walked in silence for a while before a thought occurred to me. "Isn't La Push like two hundred some odd miles away?" I asked skeptically.

"Yeah."

"Um… that takes like five hours by car and we're walking," I pointed out as I stumbled through the brush, "You know, I've got a car; we could drive." He just laughed at me. "It'll take us days to get there!" I protested at his laughter.

"Chill, it won't take nearly that long. Do me a favor; close your eyes and turn that way," Jacob instructed as he pointed behind me and jumped behind a boulder.

I did as I was told and crossed my arms over my chest; he had to be one of the most frustrating people I'd ever met. Then suddenly something hit me and was draped over my shoulders. "What the hell, Jake?" I asked as I pulled the object off my shoulders to examine it. "Ah! Ew! Jake, gross!" I yelled as I tossed his pants back over my shoulder.

There was a low whine from behind me and I turned to see the large russet wolf looking at me with pleading eyes with the cut off jeans draped over his head. "Oh, fine," I conceded as I took the jeans and folded them neatly, "Now what?" He knelt down again and tilted his head. I sighed and climbed on his back and he took off.

In a matter of hours a group of the same large wolves took up running beside us; if it had been under normal circumstances I would have been terrified but for some reason this seemed ridiculously normal to me. It was then that I realized how tired I was; my eyelids started to droop and I would have fallen asleep if not for a drop of water hitting my cheek. Then it happened again, and again. It took my tired brain a moment to process what this meant. _Oh great, it's raining._

Jacob's POV

_Nice Jake, run off to get over a girl and just come back with a new one, that'll solve the problem,_ Leah's shrill voice chimed in my head.

_Lay off, Leah. I want you to do something for me; think you can handle it?_ It was Sam's voice; chiding almost mocking her.

_Yeah of course._ She was only too willing to do whatever he asked.

_Break off. Go home and phase back; this is a man talk._ Ouch. I could hear the bite in his voice, but sure enough Leah broke off and headed toward her home. No one spoke until her awareness faded from our minds.

_I have to admit, Jake, she had a good point. _Stupid Quil. He didn't even give me a chance to explain.

_I'm not going to have to send anyone else home either, am I?_ Sam asked; he sounded like a camp counselor talking to unruly children. There was a chorus of no's. _Good, now let Jake explain before we all go jumping to conclusions. Jake, please explain._

_I was about fifty miles out from Darrington when a group of hunters caught sight of me; I had let my guard down. And sure enough one got a good shot into my leg but I could still run—_

_What does that have to do with the girl? _Quil interrupted.

_I'm getting there. Anyway, I was just a few miles out from Darrington when I came across a clearing and by that point I was starving and I smelled food. So I wandered in and the first thing I saw was this girl laying in the middle of the clearing with an ice chest sitting next to her; her eyes were closed so I just figured she was sleeping. I checked out the clearing to make sure nobody else was around but then when I turned back toward her, she was sitting up staring straight at me. At first she just sat there but then she reached over and pulled a sandwich out of the ice chest, put it on a plate and let me have it. She has got to be either the bravest or the stupidest person I've ever met. Anyway, she gave me her entire picnic and I feel kind of guilty because I let my guard down again and she tried to pet me I think and it surprised me and I…_ I trailed off, ashamed upon looking back at what had happened.

_And you did what?_ Sam prompted, sensing my discomfort.

_I bit her. Now in my defense she snuck up on me and she was very quiet and most of all: who tries to pet a giant wolf? Needless to say I was not expecting to be petted,_ I babbled on and on.

_Jake, get on with it._ Sam's voice snapped me out of my ramblings.

_Oh, yeah, right. So anyway, she didn't scream or anything in fact she said it wasn't that bad and that it was her fault and she shouldn't have done that. Odd, right? Anyway, so the hunters somehow tracked me back to the clearing and the girl wouldn't let them shoot me. She argued and argued and finally they just got tired of it and shot at me anyway. Now this time I didn't get hit but she kind of did._ There was a shock of murmurs through the group. _It's not that bad, it just grazed her arm. So anyway, I didn't feel right just leaving her there after what she'd just done so I let her on my back and then ran to a cave that I had spotted earlier. She was more cautious this time though. It took her a grand total of fifteen minutes to decide again that I was harmless and tried to pet me._

_You didn't bite her again, did you?_ It was Embry who interrupted this time.

_No, I just let her. What was the harm, you know? So anyway, the cut she got was small but it was big enough to attract an unwanted guest. We, well she was attacked by a newborn vampire. Now I was able to rip it to shreds but I had no way to tell her to light the body on fire so I did the only thing I could think to do. I ran behind a rock, phased back then ran back out and told her to go get some tinder and surprisingly, she just did, no questions or anything. So I got her to come with me, I explained everything; well actually she guessed everything and I told her I had to bring her back here so I could ask you guys what to do about her. And now we're here. Ta-da!_ I finished, for a moment there was silence as everyone took in the new information.

_Does she have any family?_ Sam asked.

_No._

_Any friends?_

_She didn't make it sound like she did._

_Poor kid,_ Jared said after this new revelation.

_Then if she doesn't have any objections, I think she should stay here at La Push, where we can keep and eye on her,_ Sam decided. There were mumbles of approval throughout the group. The rest of the run to La Push was silent up until about a mile or so out.

_Um, Jake, I think you're starting to lose your cargo,_ Jared said as he noticed Samantha's grip loosening as she started drifting off to sleep on my back despite the light rain.

_Oh shit,_ I muttered before I intentionally jumped, forcing her to quickly wake up and tighten her grip.

Samantha's POV

"Hey," I attempted to sound irritated through my yawn. This seemed to amuse the wolves who all made this odd throaty noise that I assumed was supposed to be a laugh, "Ha-ha, yeah, real funny guys." They all seemed shocked at my comprehension. Before I could say anything else the large black wolf broke off and ran behind a boulder and we came into a clearing that had a little house with a wooden porch. _How quaint._

Jake let me down then he and the other wolves went back into the forest. A young man, older than Jake, but still young, walked out into the clearing.

"Hi, I'm Sam," he greeted me as he shook my hand.

"Um, hi, my name is Sam also," I replied awkwardly.

"So Sam, I see you've met Sam," Jake said as he walked out of the forest wearing his cut off jeans.

"Um, yeah," we said in unison.

"This is going to be a problem," Jake observed.

"Ya think?" I said sarcastically.

"Can we call you Samantha?" Jake asked.

"No."

"Alrighty then, hm… this is going to be a problem," Jake continued to think.

I sighed. "You can call me Sammy, if you must."

"Great, that'll make life easier," Jake replied. Just then four other gigantic guys came walking out of the forest. "Oh, hey guys, this is Sammy; Sammy, this is Quil, Embry, Paul and Jared," he said as he pointed to each man in turn.

"Nice to meet you all," I said shakily; they were all huge. _There must be something in the water around here._

"Likewise," Sam said curtly, officially ending the conversation. "Now, Sammy, I assume you know everything, including that we are to be kept a secret." They all looked at me expectantly.

"My lips are sealed," I said as I pretended to zip my mouth shut and throw away the key.

"Good, and you know that we'll have to keep an eye on you, right?"

"I guess."

"And that would be pretty difficult if you were in Darrington, are you catching what I'm saying?" Sam asked as he looked down at me.

"Uh-huh. You want me to stay here, right?"

"Exactly."

"What about my stuff?" I asked innocently.

"Jake will drive you back tomorrow, you'll get your belongings and bring them back here."

"Okay." This was all happening so fast that my brain didn't have time to process it so it was just shoving it to the back of my head to be analyzed when the opportunity presented itself.

"Think we could finish this conversation inside?" Jake asked as he noticed me shiver slightly. And with that the tension faded and everyone herded inside. Once inside I realized just how small the house was, cute, but small.

"What's all the commotion?" an old man in a wheelchair asked as he entered from one of the small rooms that I assumed were bedrooms, "It's one o'clock in the morning boys." Then he seemed to notice me, "And girl."

"Dad, this is Sammy, she knows. She kind of figured out and she's going to stay here at La Push so we can keep and eye on her," Jake explained as he came back into the room with a pile of blankets. "No worries, you can go back to sleep."

And he did. One by one the other boys cleared out until it was just Sam, Jake and I. It was a tad awkward sitting on a couch in between to behemoths who looked like they could crush me.

"So, Sammy, how old are you?" Sam asked.

"Sixteen, seventeen in April."

"Cool, so you're Jake's age, roughly."

This questioning went on for around an hour before Sam left and Jake moved to the lounge chair across from the couch, allowing me to lay down under the warm blankets.

Jacob's POV

I was just about to ask her how she managed to live on her own when I looked over at her and noticed that she was sound asleep. Her petite body was rolled up in a ball under the comforters; her burgundy hair cascaded around her head like streams of garnets across the pillow; the pale skin on her cheeks was tinged with a slight blush from the cold around her and her deep emerald eyes were squeezed shut in deep sleep. I couldn't help but smile; she was quite possibly one of the cutest things I had ever seen. I mentally slapped myself. _Haven't I caused enough trouble already?_

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****Satta:** Dun-dun-dunnnn... Poor Jake... I wanna give him a hug... but he's fictional so I can't... Damn... Anyway, please review. Even if it's to tell me something I did wrong or just to say update soon or whatever. Critisism accepted, Flames will be used to burn vampire corpses and to roast marshmallows, thank you. Btw Darrington is a real place! Check it out on google earth! Woot! So damn... I don't own Darrington either!


	3. Stealing Sammy

**A/N: Two chapters in one day people! Be pleased! Well... I've got nothing else to say except for R&R!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight, I do own Sammy and Macy.**

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**Recap:**

Jacob's POV

I was just about to ask her how she managed to live on her own when I looked over at her and noticed that she was sound asleep. Her petite body was rolled up in a ball under the comforters; her burgundy hair cascaded around her head like streams of garnets across the pillow; the pale skin on her cheeks was tinged with a slight blush from the cold around her and her deep emerald eyes were squeezed shut in deep sleep. I couldn't help but smile; she was quite possibly one of the cutest things I had ever seen. I mentally slapped myself. _Haven't I caused enough trouble already?_

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Samantha's POV

I woke the next morning to the bright light of the sun pouring in the window. I groaned and pulled the blanket over my head and buried my face in my pillow. To my surprise the blanket pulled back; in fact it pulled as if it were trying to get away from me.

"Rise and shine, sleeping beauty!" Jake shouted as he yanked the blanket off the couch taking me with it. I landed with a thud then whimpered pathetically.

"I don't wanna," I mumbled through the sheets as I curled up on the ground.

"Come on, we're going to get your stuff and if we want to get back by dark we need to go now," Jake insisted as he tried to find me in the mass of covers. Suddenly the covers directly in front of my face were removed and replaced by Jake's face. "Found ya," he said as he grabbed my arm and dragged me out of the covers.

"I'm coming, I'm coming," I muttered as I disentangled myself from the mass of comforters.

"Get in the car," he ordered.

"What about breakfast?" I whined.

"We'll get it on the way, now get in the car. The sooner we get going, the sooner you get breakfast," he coaxed and I obediently crawled into the front seat of his Rabbit.

"Nice car; very comfy seats," I mumbled as I curled up in the passenger seat with my kidnapped blanket.

"Yeah, that's definitely why I got it," he said, more to himself than the already asleep me in the next seat over.

Jacob's POV

She was out like a light before I had even started the car. I just sighed and pulled the blanket up over her shoulders. I needed breakfast and I wasn't exactly sure how much she ate or what she wanted but I figured you can never go wrong with doughnuts so I pulled into the first place I found and got a dozen chocolate doughnuts for me and half a dozen variety doughnuts; what she didn't eat, I would. About three and a half hours later she finally woke up; shifting slightly and seeming to catch sight of the trees blurring by the passenger window. She jumped and squeaked; she seemed to have no idea where she was. But comprehension seemed to don on her when she turned to face me.

"We're going back to Darrington, right?" she asked with a yawn.

"Yeah, to get your stuff, then we're coming back," I explained.

"Got it," she mumbled then her stomach growled and she looked over at me with saucer eyes and blush rising to her cheeks.

"Hungry?" I asked with a chuckle as I offered her the box of six doughnuts. She just nodded and muttered an embarrassed "thank you" before taking the box and immediately devouring the doughnuts. "How does such a little girl eat so much?" I asked after a moment.

She looked embarrassed again. "I have a big appetite and a fast metabolism," she answered while blinking innocently.

I took that to be the end of the conversation. After awhile the question from last night was beginning to burn in my head. "How do you manage to live on your own?"

"Hm? Oh, you mean how I maintain a healthy lifestyle without any help?" she asked, I nodded. "Well, I live in a one room flat, I work two part time jobs and I get most of my clothes on sale or at the thrift store and I try to get food from the farmers market and if not then I go to the food bank and I can usually get some okay stuff there and I try to avoid he grocery store and prepackaged things as much as possible."

"Wow, that's tough," I said after a moment.

"Nah, not really; it's actually really healthy because junk food is expensive so I haven't been able to eat it and working two jobs isn't that bad either," she said with a smile although it didn't quite reach her emerald eyes.

Samantha's POV

So after driving for another two hours he finally needed directions to my house. "555 Elwell Street."

"Okay, do you want me to wait here?" Jake asked as he came to a stop in front of my apartment building.

"You can come if you want," I replied as I made my way up the stairs; I couldn't help but glance over my shoulder to see if he was following and sure enough he was trailing a few feet behind me. I unlocked the door and walked in. I turned to him just as he was stepping through the door, "Congratulations, you are the first person other than me to ever enter this apartment."

"No I'm not," he said as he sniffed the air and nearly cringed.

"What do you mean?" I asked warily.

"A vampire's been here. Recently judging by the smell," Jake replied as he began walking around the small, almost bare apartment.

"Maybe it was the one you killed," I suggested as I began packing up as many things as would fit in my two duffel bags and my trunk suitcase.

"Nope, the scent is more recent and it's unfamiliar," he argued; I just shrugged and hmpf'd in return and continued packing. "Aren't you the least bit concerned?"

"Not really," I answered without looking up from my trunk.

"Why not?"

"You wouldn't let it kill me, would you?" I asked as I finally looked up at him from the spot where I was kneeling next to my trunk.

The look on my face must have just about killed him because his breath caught in his throat and he seemed to have trouble thinking of a reply.

"Of course I guess it would be easier for all of you if I did die or was otherwise silenced," I said after a moment of waiting for a response as I looked back down at my clothes.

"Don't say that."

"What?" I asked in confusion as I looked up at him again; he looked either angry or, hurt or offended, possibly concerned; no it was none of those, he looked haunted.

"Don't say that. No matter what, we won't let it hurt you."

"Oh, okay. Sorry," I said as I turned back down and continued packing.

Jacob's POV

For a moment I didn't see her kneeling next to that suit case; I saw Bella. Not Bella as I had known her but a sick twisted version of Bella with the glowing red eyes of a newborn and cold, pale, rock-hard skin and a blood dripping down her chin onto her lap as she stared at me. I shook myself mentally and focused back on Sammy. I watched her continue packing; occasionally she would pause and make room in her trunk then go back to packing.

"You need any help?" I asked finally.

"Hm? Oh no, I've got it. Thank you though," she said as she continued to shuffle around the tiny apartment. She was pulling things out of the small closet when she paused and just stared at something.

"Is everything alright, Sammy?" I asked in a concerned tone as I stood from where I had sat on the couch.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. Just something I had forgotten about," she answered as she pulled out a suit cover and folded it neatly to lie on top of the other clothes in her trunk and closed it and snapped it shut.

"Are you finished?" I asked after a moment.

"Yeah," she replied as she picked up the duffel bags and started to reach for the trunk.

"You can't carry everything," I said as I walked over and picked the trunk up with ease despite its size and weight. She conceded and we walked out and locked the door and deposited her stuff in the car before she insisted that she could go alone to the land lord's house to turn in her key. Once that was over with there was still the matter of her car and how to get it back to La Push, if it was going at all. It really was a hunk of junk, but she was convinced that she could get some money out of it so we called up the nearest auto shop and they said they'd have someone out there as soon as possible.

Samantha's POV

The auto shop guy finally arrived about a half hour later. He looked at the car, checked the miles, and did some other stuff I didn't understand then turned to me and sighed.

"How much did you pay for this car, miss?" he asked.

"I inherited it," I replied.

"Well, I can only pay you three thousand for it," he said with a sniff, "We got a deal, missy?"

I turned to Jake, he seemed to know more about this stuff than I did, and he nodded in approval. I looked over at the car one last time then turned to the man, "Sold." The man wrote me a check and drove the car off. "So that was a good deal?"

"Yeah, I would've only paid two thousand for it," Jake said with a chuckle as he jumped in the front seat of his Rabbit.

"I still have two things to do," I said as I climbed in the passenger side.

"What're those?"

"I've got to quit both of my jobs."

"Just tell me where."

"Skidder's Bar & Grill on Darrington Street."

"You work at a bar?"

"Hey, I didn't have room to be picky and it paid better than Burger Barn," I countered lightly.

"Oh you know you were just in it for the booze," Jake teased with a chuckle.

"Yeah, you caught me," I mock conceded.

After that was handled I pointed him down the street to my other job at a small boutique where the wealthier residents of Darrington shopped. I walked in and instantly regretted letting Jake come with me; there near the fitting rooms was the bane of my existence and her cronies.

"Jake, maybe you should wait in the car," I said urgently.

"Why? You think I'm afraid of some girly clothes?" he teased.

"No, I just think it would be better because—,"

"Well, well, well, hello Samantha," a high pitched nasally voice chimed behind me.

"Hi Macy," I greeted bitterly as I turned around with a forced smile.

"You're late you know, and not in uniform either, for shame!" Macy chided and all her little clones laughed behind her. "And who is this?" Macy asked as she looked Jake up and down.

"This is Jake, my friend," I said as pleasantly as I could manage.

"A friend? Hm… well now we know why you didn't show up this morning," she said as she looked back at her cronies, then she grinned suggestively at me, "Late night?"

"Shut up Macy, it's not like that," I countered.

"You must have brought him in from out of town, I haven't seen him before," Macy continued to prod.

I decided it was finally time to fight back; I wasn't coming back here anyway, not that I ever fit in, in the first place. "You would know; you've done every guy in town at least once."

Macy looked flustered and her groupies gasped from behind her. "You- you take that back," Macy ordered.

"No, I don't think I will," I said slowly.

"I'll make sure nobody in Darrington ever speaks to you again!" she shouted as she stomped her foot angrily.

"I wouldn't have it any other way," I said with a mocking smile as I turned toward the cash register, "Oh and by the way Macy, I'll miss you." I smirked as I started toward the register, "Come on Jake."

"I bet the only reason you're leaving town is because… because—," Macy stuttered at my retreating form.

"Oh give it a rest Macy," I heard one of her cronies say.

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**Satta: hope you liked it... now review... see that little purple button in the bottom left hand corner of the screen? Click it, you know you want to... Please want to...**


	4. Puberty Crisis

**A/N: It's 1:18 AM and I am updating again... that will make three chapters in less than 24 hours... be please people who are keeping up with this. If I fall asleep at lunch with my grandpa toorrow don't let it be in vain... Anyway R&R! :yawn:**

**Disclaimer: Don't own Twilight... :snore:**

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**Recap:**

_"I bet the only reason you're leaving town is because… because—," Macy stuttered at my retreating form._

_"Oh give it a rest Macy," I heard one of her cronies say._

* * *

After that bit of excitement was done I informed the manager that I was quitting and leaving town; he gave me my paycheck and wished me well with a stilted hand shake. We were back in the car and on our way out of Darrington before Jake spoke.

"You really put that girl in her place," he said without turning away from the road.

"I should have done worse," I muttered.

"Is that why you didn't want me to come in?" Jake asked.

"Yeah, although it was her comment about you that acted as a springboard for me to dis her, so I'm not disappointed that you didn't listen," I said with a chuckle and a smile.

His mood seemed to lighten a little. "So what're you going to do with your three thousand-some-odd dollars?" he asked enthusiastically.

"Um… I don't know yet," I answered after a moment of thought. Then I paused, "I know!"

"What?"

"A new pillow."

"Why a new pillow?"

"Because I couldn't find my old one."

The car swerved but Jake quickly regained control. "Your pillow was missing from your apartment?" he asked me in alarm.

"Yeah, looks like my vampire visitor has a pillow fetish. None of my pillows were there then again I only had three pillows," I said, not catching his alarm.

"Doesn't that worry you?"

"No, why does it worry you? So he took my pillows, what's the big deal?"

"Those pillows have your scent on them, that means this guy is going to track you," Jake said with urgency. "Do you understand now?"

"Why would he track me? I haven't done anything to any vampires that I know of," I asked in sudden terror.

"Calm down, calm down. There's nothing we can do about it at the moment but when we get back to La Push I'll tell Sam. My guess is he'll want to ask the Cullens if they know anything," Jake said he last part more to himself than to me.

"The Cullens?" I asked.

"Vampire family that lives in Forks," Jake answered. I froze in my seat. "Chill, they don't eat humans."

"Why would they know?" I asked after regaining my composure.

"I don't know, but it never hurts to ask."

On the way back to La Push we stopped at a Burger King in Sequim and ate lunch/dinner. The rest of the way was pretty much quiet other than a few comments or questions by either of us. It was painfully obvious how nervous both of us were about the vampire situation. When we finally arrived back at Jake's house he helped me unload my stuff then quickly filled Billy in on the latest development who in turn called up presumably Sam while Jake went out and phased to get hold of anyone who might be running.

I just sat there the entire time, completely helpless. Within the hour all of the pack was assembled in the Black's living room discussing strategies. I liked most of them already. Jared seemed nice, as did Seth, but neither talked much, Sam was very much qualified to be the leader, Paul had a short temper but his heart was in the right place, and Embry and Quil were friendly but neither soft spoken. The only one I disliked was the only one who disliked me; Leah, she protested that they should just kick me out and let me fend for myself and I would have agreed with her if she hadn't said it in such a condescending way.

"She isn't worth our trouble, plus we fought for Jake's sake once this month already," Leah retorted.

"This isn't for my sake it's for Sammy's sake. We can't just stand by and let an innocent person get killed!" Jake countered.

"If it weren't for you she wouldn't even be our problem!" Leah shouted.

That hit a nerve, Jacob just stood there for a moment wide-eyed then he blinked and took a deep breath. While he had been standing there the room had burst into argument over Leah's statement and he was able to slip away, almost unnoticed. He was just at the bottom of the stairs when I got out onto the porch.

"Jake," I called after him as I ran down the steps. He turned to me slightly but kept walking, a little faster now. "Jake, stop." But he didn't. Finally I stopped following him and just stood there in the middle of the 

gravel driveway. "Jake, please stop," I pleaded but he didn't. He was almost to the edge of the woods now, I had one more chance. "It's not your fault, Jake." That made him stop; he rounded on his heel and strode back over to me until he was just inches away. His dark eyes were angry and his hands were shaking. "It's not our fault," I repeated.

"Go back inside, Sammy," he ordered as he began to shake more noticeably.

"No."

"Now Sammy."

"No."

"Sammy, it's for your own good."

"No."

"Quit being stubborn," he ordered through his teeth, he was now shaking all over.

"Not until you quit," I was standing firm no matter how angry he got.

"Sammy, for your own safety, get inside. I don't know how much longer I can control myself."

"No, Jake, whatever you do I can take."

"No you can't, Sammy."

"Try me."

"Please Sammy," he pleaded, his voice cracked.

"Why?"

"Because I'm going to change and I don't want to hurt you. It's already my fault you're in this mess don't give me another reason to feel guilty," he spat out quickly, "If not for your own safety, will you do it for me? Please, go inside so I know you're safe."

I sighed. "Fine, but it won't be as easy to convince me next time."

"Thank you, Sammy." And with that he ran off into the woods.

I walked back into the house dejectedly. I closed the door behind me and went and sat in a chair near the door and only then did I realize that the room had fallen silent and that everyone was looking at me.

"I tried to stop him," I offered feebly. Leah huffed; I turned a searing glare on her, "You're the reason he ran off don't go acting like it's my fault. Don't think I don't know what's going on here; I see right through you. You pick away at Jake and the others to keep from picking away at yourself; you act the way you do because you're insecure and the only way you know how to deal with it is by messing with 

other people and indulging in our own fantasies. But you know what, Leah? One day it's going to come back and bite you whether figuratively or literally as the case may be. One day you're going to need something and need it bad and no one is going to be around to help because you were never around to help them. It's obvious that there's some tension between you and a certain someone in the pack but I suggest for the good of the pack that you set it aside. Believe me I know how it feels. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, but honey you can't use that as an excuse forever so I suggest you find a new one or better yet just get over yourself." I took a deep breath and walked out and sat on the hood of Jake's Rabbit to wait for him.

I had been sitting there for almost two hours before anything happened. Leah had been the first one to leave; she had sent me what was supposed to be a glare but ended up more like a look of defeat.

"Thanks."

"Huh?" I asked as I turned to see Jake standing next to the Rabbit with a tired smile on his face.

"Thanks," he repeated.

"For what?"

"For standing up to Leah, that took a lot of guts," he answered as he climbed up on the hood of the Rabbit and sat next to me.

"Nope, just a really bad temper," I said with a chuckle. Then I suddenly turned to him, "How did you know about that?"

He chuckled lightly. "What you said has been running through her head ever since you said it, over and over, like a broken record."

"I thought it was pretty good for an adrenaline induced speech."

"In that case it's even more impressive."

There were a few moments of silence. "Hey Jake?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks."

"For what?"

"For saving my life and then wanting to keep me alive even after all of the trouble I've caused," I answered as I lay back onto the windshield of the car and looked up at the moon and the stars.

Jacob's POV

I looked down at her, I doubted that she knew how beautiful she looked with the glow of the moon shining off her hair and her eyes, although it made her skin look much too hard, too cold, too dead, too 

much like them. Just for a second I was struck with the irrational fear that she was somehow one of them. I didn't know what to do, it seemed odd but I had to make sure she wasn't so I reached out slowly and brushed the back of my hand against her cheek. No, she wasn't one of them; she was soft and warm, just as she should be.

"Jake?" she asked as she looked up at me.

"Hm?" I asked suddenly forced out of my musings.

"Are you okay?" Sammy asked me as she sat up with concern on her face.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just got a little distracted."

"By what?" she asked in a perplexed manner.

"By you." _The statement slipped out before I could catch it._

"By me?"

"Yes." _Quit it._

"Why?"

"You're beautiful." _I really need to watch my tongue._

"Th-thank you," she stuttered as blush dusted her cheeks and she looked down, suddenly interested in the hood of the car.

"You're welcome," I replied with a half smile. _Gah that sounded like flirting. I've done enough damage already. I need to stop, but it's just so natural; I can't help it._

She looked back up at the stars and after a moment pulled knees up under her coat and shivered slightly. I could hardly stand the ghostly glow the moon was casting on her features; it was going to drive me mad.

"Do you want to go inside?" I asked suddenly, "You know, you looked cold and I just wondered if you wanted to go inside where it's warmer." _Damn I sound like an idiot._ One part of me told me that I should just tell her the truth but the other part of me told me that I shouldn't get too attached to her because that could just lead to more problems with the pack.

"No, I'd rather be where I can see the stars."

_As long as I'm where I can see you._ Thank god I was able to hold that one back. _What's happening to me? Why this all of a sudden. Stupid puberty; I thought I was done with that by now. Maybe this is wolf puberty. No that's just stupid. I'm being stupid! I'm arguing with myself, in my head. Maybe I'm going insane, no, that can't be it or I'd be talking to myself instead._ I shook my head in hopes of clearing it of all this touchy-feely nonsense that I didn't have the time or the energy for.

"Jake, are you alright? You're acting kind of strange," Sammy asked with what seemed to be genuine concern.

"I'm fine." I sounded harsher than I intended. I instantly regretted it too; she looked hurt, if only a little bit, but still it was enough to make my heart clench. I took a deep breath. "I'm sorry."

"For what?" she asked in confusion.

"That was harsh; I didn't mean it to be."

"It's okay, you had a tough time today," she answered with a half hearted smile.

"It's still no excuse to be hard on you."

She leaned back against the windshield and continued to watch the moon and the stars. I tried my best not to look down at her for fear that the moon would play its cruel trick on me again. It was awhile before the fear wore off but when I finally looked she was sound asleep, breathing lightly with a small smile on her face. I smiled and slid off the car as quietly as I could manage and lifted her off the hood of the car and carried her into the house and set her down on the couch.

When I straightened I noticed that her small hand was clenched into a fist and there was no longer a smile on her face. I knelt down and ran my fingers through her hair, amazed at how velvety it was, slowly her fist unclenched and the frown faded from her features and she was at peace again. I decided that I needed sleep as well if I was going to put up a good front for tomorrow's impending verbal war with Leah so I headed off to my room to sleep casting one last glance over my shoulder to make sure Sammy was still sleeping soundly.

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**Satta: This is the third chapter in 24 hours. BE PLEASED. It's an order, not a request. Please review to make my sleep deprivation seem well founded. Push the cute little purple button... :yawn:**


	5. Man with a Plan

**A/N: Woot! Chapter 5! It's kinda gushy and angsty for reasons that are beyond me... Anyway! Please review! I love shadow readers but I'd love them even more if they reviewed! Thank you Georgia and ChibiAria for your reviews so far! They are much appreciated! And yes Georgia you get your camio, it's in a chapter in the near future.**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Twilight would this be on fanfiction? I think not...**

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**Recap:**

_When I straightened I noticed that her small hand was clenched into a fist and there was no longer a smile on her face. I knelt down and ran my fingers through her hair, amazed at how velvety it was, slowly her fist unclenched and the frown faded from her features and she was at peace again. I decided that I needed sleep as well if I was going to put up a good front for tomorrow's impending verbal war with Leah so I headed off to my room to sleep casting one last glance over my shoulder to make sure Sammy was still sleeping soundly._

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Samantha's POV

The next morning came much too quickly for my taste but then again it always did. I looked around and found that Billy was already awake but Jake was still asleep. About an hour and a half later Sam wandered into the yard and walked up to the porch. He nodded a greeting to Billy before rounding on me.

"Sammy, can I talk to you?" he asked as he motioned inside.

"Sure."

A moment later we were sitting on the couch in the living room. "What did you need Sam?"

"It's about what you said to Leah last night," he said quickly.

"Oh."

"Everything you said was absolutely right but I'm afraid she won't see it that way. She has a pretty bad temper; it just isn't as obvious as Paul's but it's just as bad, if not worse." He looked at me expectantly. 

"In short, I don't think it would be a very good idea for you to be around her alone, at least not for awhile."

"Okay, I think I can handle that."

"Good."

"Was that all?"

"Yeah."

"Good morning Sam, good morning other Sam."

"Morning Jake," I replied pleasantly.

"Jake," Sam greeted.

"Well, I don't know about you guys, but I'm starved," Jake said as he patted his amazingly flat stomach, "What're we going to do about breakfast?"

"It's twelve thirty, Jake," I said with a chuckle.

"Oh, well in that case, what're we going to do about lunch?" Jake corrected.

"I can make lunch," I volunteered.

"You sure? We eat an awful lot and no doubt the other guys will show up soon," Sam pointed out with a chuckle.

"Oh, well in that case I may need to do a shopping trip. What do you guys like? I've got some extra cash to burn," I replied; I hadn't cooked for a large group of people for so long and I wasn't about to let this opportunity go to waste. Sam and Jake just looked at each other and smiled.

An hour later I was back home with a couple bags of groceries in my hand. I walked in and set them on the small kitchen counters. Jake looked over at me oddly, "You do know that wouldn't even feed one of us right?"

"The rest is in the car," I said as I motioned back toward the door. I looked over at the other guys who were just lounging around the living room watching TV and frowned. "Can we redirect this boundless energy toward something productive, like bringing in the groceries?" I asked sarcastically.

"Yes _Mother_," Jake said with equal sarcasm as he headed for the door. I distinctly remember hearing one of the guys asking, "You actually let her drive the Rabbit." When they walked back in, each was carrying several bags and Jake had an apple in his mouth. "Jake," I scolded as I grabbed hold of the apple. He mumbled something that I didn't understand, "Drop it." He didn't, "I said: drop it." Finally he let go and pouted. "Good boy," I said as I petted him on the head and laughed. He sent me a mock glare. "Okay, everyone out!"

"What? You're kicking us out?" Jake complained.

"Help or get out, you're choice."

"But I'm hungry," he whimpered pathetically.

I rolled my eyes. "Help or get out."

"Please." I tried not to look at his puppy dog pout.

"It's not going to work."

He continued.

"Might as well quit; puppy dog pout doesn't work on me."

"It might since he's an actual puppy," Paul scoffed.

I sighed. "Fine, but you have to help."

He smirked and held up his right hand. "Scouts' honor."

Within another hour lunch was ready to be devoured by the pack of hungry teenage werewolves. I was just putting the last of it on the table when Sam raised his hand for quiet, "I know things are just starting to seem normal again but I should inform you that Carlisle and Edward will be coming over later to help us out with our new vampire problem."

I heard Jake's breath catch in his throat again and his hands started shaking. Suddenly the glass in his hand shattered spraying glass shards onto the floor. "Jake!" I shouted as I grabbed the nearest towel and handed it to him, "What's the matter?"

"Jake's got a problem with Edward for stealing his girl—," Leah started but then she saw the glare that she was receiving from both Jake and I.

"Jake," Sam said when he noticed how badly Jake was shaking now.

I didn't wait for him to say anything; I just grabbed his hand and dragged him out of the house. I was surprised with how willingly he followed. I finally let go of his hand when we got to the edge of the woods. "Go on."

"What?" he asked.

"I know you're about to change and I didn't want you to hurt anyone so I knew I had to get you out here. So go ahead, you can change now. I'll go inside," I said as I turned and started toward the door.

"No, wait," he said as he caught my arm, "Thanks but I don't want to phase right now. I'm trying to control it this time."

"Why? You seem angrier this time," I asked in confusion.

"But this is something I need to get over," he tried to explain, "And it would really help if—,"

"If I left you alone, I got it." And I turned to leave again.

"No, will you quit trying to leave. It would help if you stayed with me," Jake said as he pulled me back toward him. He jerked a little hard and ended up pulling me into his chest.

Jacob's POV

I lost track of my own strength for a moment and she was suddenly against me; staring up at me with wide eyes. My mind wavered for a moment as I looked down at her, I faltered with words, "Are you okay? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to—," She wasn't looking at me anymore; she looked down and just leaned her head against my chest.

"I'm here as long as you want me to be," Sammy said; her warm breath was still cool against my chest.

"We might be here for awhile," I replied with a chuckle and she looked up at me and smiled.

She looked back down and took my hand from my side and held it up, seeming pleased. "You aren't shaking anymore."

"I haven't got any reason to be angry anymore," I said as I wrapped my arm around her waist and rested my chin on the top of her head. I seemed to have spoken to soon; I smelled that telltale smell and heard the telltale purr of an expensive car engine.

Samantha's POV

Suddenly Jake stiffened. His hand started shaking slightly and he seemed to have almost completely forgotten my presence, "Jake." I held his hand in an attempt to quell the shaking.

"I'm sorry, Sammy."

"No, don't be sorry. I'm just trying to reassure you. What's going on?" I asked in confusion.

"The Cullens are here."

"Oh."

"Let's go say hi," Jake said with fake cheer as he led me back out of the forest. Just as we were leaving the forest a black Mercedes pulled into the drive way. It looked ridiculously out of place in the small town setting. "They didn't bring Bella, thank god."

I didn't have to ask who Bella was; I knew all I needed to know about her. She was the reason Jake shook when he heard the Cullens' name and the reason he was so miserable; the reason Leah used to pick at him. I hadn't even met her and I was convinced I wouldn't like her. The younger Cullen got out of the passenger side and immediately sent me a calculating look that was somehow menacing.

"You'll have to watch what you think around him," Jake said as he squeezed my hand gently.

"You mean he can read my mind?"

"Yeah, and apparently you were thinking something he didn't like all that much. What were you thinking?"

"Nothing important… just something along the lines of I don't trust them because they're vampires." I lied.

"That would do it." He looked up, "Now come on, let's go inside before they start without us."

When we walked inside all eyes immediately turned to me. I froze. I saw the older one of the two vampires shudder slightly and the younger one looked over at him oddly then seemed shocked for a moment before schooling his face into being completely neutral.

"Sammy, they need to get a good whiff of your scent so they can possibly track down the guy who's got your pillows," Sam said as he stepped forward.

The younger vampire looked over at the older one who nodded then he walked forward and held out his hand, "Edward Cullen."

"Nice to meet you Edward, My name's Samantha Russell, call me Sammy," I said as I shook his hand and was shocked at how cold and hard it was; I had to try not to frown.

Edward smirked. "That's why we try not to make a practice of touching humans."

I looked past Edward at who must be Carlisle and was surprised that he made no move to greet me other than a nod and an awkward smile. _What's his problem? Do I smell bad or something? _

"Quite the contrary, that's why he's staying away." I cocked my head at him and he grinned. "It's a vampire thing."

"Wait, so I'm at risk just standing here?" I asked as I took a step back.

"Not at all, I'm sorry Edward's explanation made it seem that way but in truth you are at no risk at all. This might seem hard to believe but I am over three centuries old and in that entire time I have never once attacked a human. So you see I'm perfectly in control; I just don't want to push my luck," Carlisle attempted to reassure me.

"Why aren't I affecting Edward like this?"

"Because you see it's like how humans prefer different types of food. It's like some people prefer apples to oranges, do you see what I'm saying?" Carlisle explained.

"I'm your favorite flavor, basically."

"That's one way of putting it, I suppose."

"That's kind of creepy but at least I get it now," I said with a shrug. Then a thought occurred to me and Edward smirked, "That's why you didn't want to smell me; it would just make you hungry or thirsty I guess."

"Correct. That and I can smell you fine from over here," Carlisle said with a smile. I smiled and laughed a little; vampires aren't so bad. "So, shall we get back to what we're going to do about this new problem?"

"She stays at La Push." I had almost forgotten Jake was there.

"Of course, I think she'd be more at risk if we took her to Forks," Carlisle agreed.

I didn't listen to the rest, instead I watched as Edward's expression changed; no doubt due to what Jake was thinking because every time Edward's expression would change, Jake would smirk. I elbowed him in the side discreetly then gave him a scolding look. He pouted but then quit. About half an hour later, Sam said that the rest of the pack could start scouting in shifts while he made final arrangements with Carlisle and Edward. So the rest of the pack trailed outside and seemed pleased with the plans so far. They each started to head separate ways but I quickly grabbed Jake's hand.

"Jake, what's your problem with him?" I asked in a harsh whisper.

"He's a vampire."

"We both know that isn't why. What did he do to you?"

"He's going to turn Bella into one of them," he muttered under his breath.

"Oh, so this is about Bella."

"No."

"What's it about then?"

"It's the principle."

"No it isn't, you love Bella and you can't stand the fact that she didn't pick you."

"Sammy," Jake said softly.

"I'm sorry that I had to say that, but you can't let one thing, no matter how large, cloud your judgment about a person. For all you know he could be a really nice guy," I continued to lecture him quietly without even acknowledging his statement.

"Sammy, I've got to go," Jake said with a little more force.

"Go ahead." And he was off in a blur leaving me standing there on the porch like an idiot.

I walked back inside to see that Carlisle, Edward and Sam were still planning so I veered off toward he kitchen to stay out of their way.

"Sammy, we could use your help over here."

I looked up and walked back over to them. "Sure Sam, what'd you need?"

"We've got a good idea of what we're doing because we did it just recently with Bella but we could use a contingency plan, any ideas?" Sam asked.

"Depends, what's the plan A?"

"We use your scent to lure them to a clearing where we overpower them. But before that one of the pack will meet you at the clearing and carry you too another location where you'll be out of danger and out of scent range," Sam explained.

"Sounds good; I think if it goes wrong when I'm laying the scent then there's nothing we can really do except fight then and there but if it goes wrong in the clearing then you guys could always retreat and try again and if it goes wrong like they show up where I am instead of the clearing then me and the person with me are royally screwed."

"Well that was helpful," Edward muttered as he rolled his eyes.

"If they're smart enough to figure it out then we were screwed in the first place."

"I agree with her because there's no way she'll be able to defend herself if one get's her alone," Carlisle said with a sigh and a grim nod.

"Hey, hey, whoa, whoa, hey; who said I can't defend myself?" I asked as I waved my hands in mock incomprehension.

"You'll be up against super speed, super strength and blood lust; you wouldn't make it," Edward said matter-of-factly.

"Give me a gun and some practice and I might be able to hold my own for awhile or at least until someone finds me," I said with a smug smirk.

"You want us to train you to fight bloodthirsty vampires?" Carlisle asked in disbelief.

"That's about it."

"You're insane."

I rolled my eyes. "Like I haven't heard that before; bring it on vampire-boy."

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**Satta: So? What'd you think? My personal opinion is that this chapter was a little slower than the others but the next one will be better!**

**Sammy: (starts punching and kicking at the air)**

**Satta: What are you doing?**

**Sammy: Starting my training montage! (continues)**

**Satta: (sigh) Please review so I don't have to put up with this any longer...**


	6. Gravity or Something

**A/N: I know it's been awhile compared to my other updates but your patience has been rewarded. EXTRA LONG CHAPTER!! Chapter title is actually the title of this amazing story that i absolutely love! So check it out!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight.**

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The next day I was standing in the middle of a large clearing with a metal pole, a pistol and a large group of observers. _What'd I get myself into?_ I saw Edward smirk and I stuck my tongue out at him. I looked over at the other observers; the entire family of Cullens was there, including Bella, the non official member of the family, as were all of the werewolves, most looked curious, Jake looked nervous.

"Sammy," Jasper called from across the clearing and I whipped around to face him with the pole in hand. "Relax, I'm not going to attack you just yet. This will take forever if you just try to learn through trial and error so I'm going to give you a little information first." I nodded and relaxed my stance. "First of all, if you're fighting a newborn you can't let them get a hold of you no matter what or they'll crush you."

I cringed at this new information then I raised my hand. "How do I tell if it's a newborn?"

"A newborn's eyes will glow bright red, and they run off the vampire equivalent of adrenaline, also they're attacks will be very straightforward so you won't have to worry about sneak attacks."

"Got it."

"But they're much stronger than older vampires, a newborn could snap a tree in half like it was a twig," Jasper explained.

"So what good does the metal pole do me?" I asked in confusion.

"You have to have something to fend them off with; you can't just use your hands or they'll soon be missing."

I cringed again. "Need you be so vivid with your descriptions?"

"You're starting to reconsider holding your own?"

"A little."

"Good, then I'm doing my job."

"You won't scare me out of this; I'm holding my ground no matter what you do or say," I said stubbornly as I crossed my arms over my chest.

Before I could blink Jasper was standing behind me with one hand on my shoulder and his mouth just centimeters from my neck, his cool breath sending chills down my spine, but I didn't move at all save for a slight shudder, "Really?"

I smirked, "Don't be so smug."

Jasper frowned, then he felt something poke into his stomach, he looked down and noticed the barrel of my pistol shoved into his diaphragm. "You should know that bullet would do nothing to me. It was a nice trick though," he whispered in my ear; I gulped. "If I were trying to kill you, you would be dead by now." There was a low growling from nearby. "Relax wolf-boy, I'm not going to hurt her."

"Jake, I'm fine. See?" I said as I stepped away from Jasper and walked over to Jake and patted him on the head. He whimpered. "Don't worry, they won't hurt me." He barked softly. "I promise." Then I turned back to Jasper and the rest of the Cullens. "Sorry, I'm ready now."

I sparred with Jasper a few times, Emmet twice and even Edward and Alice; Carlisle had thought it better that he not attack me, even if it was practice. It had been four hours since we started practicing and I was exhausted, but I wasn't about to tell them that. I was currently sparring with Emmet and was surprisingly holding my own very well.

"You know Jasper, she might be able to hold her own against a newborn," Alice observed as she watched me duck out of the way of one of Emmet's punches.

"What if it isn't a newborn?"

"Then let her fight one of us."

"She'd hold her own against a newborn because she's so good at anticipating moves but if an experienced vampire ran across her she'd have a problem; anticipation doesn't work on everyone," Jasper explained the he smirked. "We'll see how she does against the master of anticipation." He got up and walked over to where Edward and Bella were talking, "Edward, would you mind giving her one last shot; move predicting is allowed this time."

"Sure."

"Good." He smirked again, "Emmet, Sammy, lay off; Sammy, I want you to spar Edward again, to simulate an older vampire."

"Aye, Aye Captain," I said with a salute; Emmet laughed and walked back over to where Rosalie and Esme were talking.

I was squaring off against Edward. I knew he was reading my thoughts so I had to effectively throw him off. _Got it_.

"Clever," Edward muttered.

"What's she using to distract you?" Alice asked excitedly.

"Music."

"Oo, what song?"

"I'm not sure; I've never heard it before. What is it?" Edward asked me.

"Hm? Oh, It's Clowns by T.a.T.u, isn't it annoying?" I asked cheerfully.

"Yes, very."

"Good it's supposed to be," I retorted as I stuck my tongue out at him.

"Well, shall we?" Edward asked as he lowered himself into a crouch.

"Bring it," I said with a smirk as I lowered into a similar crouch with the pole in my right hand extended out to my side.

He was at my right side in an instant, lashing out at me with outstretched arms. I quickly moved to intercept and his hand went right through the pole, breaking it in half. I quickly fumbled with the pieces as he pulled back and began to circle me like a jungle cat. For a moment I focused too much and let my thoughts wander away from the song; he smirked and I realized my error and quickly picked up where I had left off, he continued to circle me, frowning now. I held the broken pole like dual swords in an attempt to fend him off.

Finally he stopped circling and just for a moment his eyes flickered toward my left side then back to mine. Even as he took his first step I spun around so my right pole connected solidly just under his chin and the left I hammered down into his stomach. I was smart enough to know that was impressive but did little good in the long run so I quickly retreated back a couple feet as he stood quickly and shook himself slightly.

"That was a solid hit," he muttered as he popped his neck.

I remained quiet, knowing that if I spoke, I would more than likely lose track of my thoughts as well. Instead I went back into a crouch and readied myself for his next attack. My pulse sped up as I saw his gaze flicker first toward my right side, where it held for a good three seconds then over to my left side for a slit second; he smirked. I took a deep breath and he feinted to my right than came at my left; my pole quickly came up and knocked his head back as my right pole came up from the other side and nailed him in the crotch. Of course it hadn't really done any damage but everyone cringed nonetheless and Edward stumbled backward away from me. I let myself meld into the rhythm of the music as I moved forward while he was temporarily blinded. My poles moved with the melody as my footwork stuck to the base.

Edward had recovered just in time to dodge my attacks and I could tell from his expression that I had caught him off guard. But after just a few moments he began to smirk and started blocking my attacks instead of dodging them. He had picked up on the rhythm and was using it against me. I had to think fast without thinking if that was possible. My mind began to race and heart began beating irregularly as he started to regain the upper hand; my attack pattern was too obvious now. I had to change the beat or else he'd have me.

I used the first song that popped into my head and while he was slightly distracted I hopped away a few feet to catch my breath. My heart felt like it was going to leap out of my chest as I tried to recover. Edward laughed and resumed his attack. I was now forced completely on the defensive and I was starting to have some difficulty anticipating his attacks; they were coming too fast so I settled for ducking and jumping at random times to the beat of the music. It was working quite well until finally time seemed to stand still for a moment and his face was not three inches from mine and he was smirking and I had a flashback to when the vampire had attacked me in the cave and my heart skipped a beat. I began to panic and my breathing quickened along with my pulse as the adrenaline flooded through my body; it was telling me that if I didn't block the next attack I would die. I was frantically swinging the broken pole around trying to block attacks that might not have even been coming.

"Stop."

The voice was so sudden I didn't process it so I continued to swing the pole then I realized I was swinging at air and Edward was a full three yards away from me. My breathing slowed but then I realized what had just been ordered.

"What? Why?" I demanded as I turned in Carlisle's direction.

"You can't allow yourself to panic," Carlisle said with a deep intake of breath. I saw Edward cock an eyebrow at him. "And also, when your heart rate speeds up it produces more of your scent which for me is quite intoxicating so I needed you to calm down so as not to overdo it."

"Alright," I replied as I dropped the poles to the ground, "But for the record I could have kept going."

"No couldn't have," Edward countered.

"Stupid, sparkly, mind-reading vampire," I muttered although I had to admit he was right; I was exhausted.

"But I'm right."

"I need my water bottle," I said as I walked over to the small backpack I had brought and pulled out a water bottle, completely ignoring Edward's statement.

I sat down in the shade and in an instant Jake was there sitting next to me, back in human form. I noticed out of the corner of my eye that he was observing me closely.

"What are you doing Jake?" I asked as I turned to him in confusion.

"You aren't hurt are you?" he asked with concern.

"No, I'm fine."

"You sure?"

"Positive."

He breathed a sigh of relief.

"I'm not helpless you know," I shot at him. He quickly glanced up. "Just because I don't have super strength or super speed or the ability to read minds or change into a giant wolf or the fact that I'm small or the fact that I'm a girl, that doesn't matter. I don't need to be looked after," I huffed.

"I never said you did." I looked up at him, his expression was soft and I couldn't pull my gaze away from his even as I felt his blazing hand cover mine. "But that doesn't mean I'm not going to anyway."

"Jake," I started but I fumbled, "Jake I'm not your responsibility."

"Not a responsibility, a choice. I don't have to look after you; I want to," he said softly as he started tracing circles on my hand.

Color rushed to my cheeks and I quickly turned away before he could notice, feigning a drink from my water bottle to cover my quick retreat. I heard him sigh next to me and my heart clenched with the fear that I may have hurt his feelings. _What should I do? I didn't mean to hurt his feelings. _My pulse began to race. _Shit, shit, shit. I need to apologize! But apologize for what? All I did was take a drink._ My heart rate continued to escalate. _Then again, I did take a drink to avoid having to say anything else. That's so mean I can't believe I did that._ My blood was now rushing at an alarming rate and I felt myself flush.

"Is something wrong, Sammy?" It was Carlisle who asked; he had obviously picked up on my escalating heart rate.

"I'm fine," I said and then I exhaled and my heart rate started to drop. That was my problem; I had forgotten to breathe. _Wow, I feel smart. What kind of idiot forgets to breathe?_ I heard Edward snicker from nearby.

"Why wouldn't she be alright?" Jake asked as he looked up at Carlisle suspiciously.

"Well it's just that," Carlisle started but then he caught my pleading look and abruptly stopped, "It's just that even I was a tad worried about her. You seem exhausted, are you sure you're alright?" he asked me again.

"Thanks Carlisle, but I'm fine."

"Alright," he said before he all but disappeared only to reappear next to Esme.

"Sammy," Jake said after a moment.

I had to work to keep my voice indifferent. "Yeah?"

"Does it bother you?"

"Does what bother me?" I asked now unable to keep from looking over at him.

"The fact that I'm a werewolf."

"Not really, why do you ask?" I asked as I turned back and rested on my elbows.

"Well I just wanted to know, cause I figured it might affect what you think of me." He said the last part softer and slower as if trying to hide his reasoning.

"Well of course it does."

"Oh."

"Not badly though," I replied. "You don't give yourself enough credit. In fact if it weren't for you, I wouldn't be here right now."

"That could be taken two ways."

"Well I meant that if it weren't for you, I would be dead now, and I rather like being alive," I said with a chuckle.

"So I don't scare you?"

"No, not at all, no matter how much you should."

His mood almost visibly lightened. "That speaks wonders for either your bravery or your stupidity; I'm not quite sure which."

"Haha, very funny. I don't think I could be scared of you if I tried," I said as I socked him in the arm softly. "You're not scary at all; you're too big to be scary."

"Sammy, that didn't make sense."

"Oh you know what I mean. You're not monster big; you're giant teddy bear big. Too nice, too happy, too Jake to be scary," I tried to explain.

"Yeah, I guess I see your point. Most people see me and automatically think dangerous, which is kind of true but not to them," he said, he was off in his own little world now, staring off into the distance past the white fluffy clouds.

"I bet if they gave you five minutes they wouldn't think you were dangerous."

"You're probably right."

"Now I agree that you have the potential to be but I'm not worried," I said with a smile.

"What about when I lose my temper."

"Um… well, I know you wouldn't mean it really."

Before he could speak Jasper was in front of us again, addressing everyone. "Alright, Alice has just informed me that they're attack plan is currently set to take place in five days so tomorrow we will not train, we'll resume training on Wednesday, none Thursday, training again on Friday, none Saturday then Sunday is the attack; everybody got it?" There was a chorus of agreement in various forms before he held up his hand for silence. "Good, now because it seems some of us have reached our limits we will end training for the day. Thanks and I'll see you here Wednesday."

"I could have kept training," I muttered under my breath and Jake chuckled next to me.

"Come on, let's go home. I'm starved," Jake said as he stood up and stretched.

"Me too," I agreed as I stood and yawned.

"I thought you weren't tired," Jake observed with a chuckle.

"I'm not," I said stubbornly as I crossed my arms over my chest and followed him into the forest.

"Oh stop being such a baby."

"I'm not being a baby," I protested then I tripped not so gracefully over a fern and would have landed flat on my face had Jake not caught my arm. I tried my best to be defiant but couldn't. The best I could muster was a weak attempt at trying to free my arm once I stood.

"Come on, Sammy, you know I was just teasing you right?" he asked, genuinely concerned that I was angry at him.

I swallowed the comeback that was on the tip of my tongue when I felt his feverishly warm hand slip into mine. "Yeah," I answered dumbly.

"Good," he said with a smile as he squeezed my hand then helped me through the dense forest.

Jacob's POV

Finally I was forced to phase when the underbrush got to thick for Sammy to walk through; I hadn't let go of her hand until then. She hadn't seemed to mind; she didn't try to pull away at least; I was getting tired of my self-denial, I liked her and I accepted that now. I liked her a lot in fact; I hardly even reacted when I heard Bella's name or when Leah prodded me. It felt good; it felt like I had finally gotten over Bella, I no longer felt betrayed and it was all because of Sammy.

_Jake_, Sam's voice entered my musings.

_Yeah Sam?_

_We need to talk._

_What about what's wrong?_

_It's about Sammy._

I growled. _What about Sammy?_

_No need to get angry, it isn't bad. I'm sure you've noticed your liking for her._

_Yeah so?_

_How would you describe it?_

_Um, I really like her?_

_You've imprinted, Jake._

That took me a moment to process. _Huh? I thought it would be stronger._

_It isn't strong because you're both resisting it. She doesn't know what's going on so she panics because all she does know is that she's inexplicably drawn to you and that scares her. You know why you're resisting, but trust me, this wouldn't hurt the pack. Think about it Jake. You also may want to think about telling her what's happening._ Then Sam's awareness faded out of mine leaving me to truly think about it alone. If it scared her now how would she react when I told her? How would I tell her? Did I need to tell her at all? Okay so the last question was stupid, of course I needed to tell her. I'd give it a little more time before I'd tell her; if she starts getting better then I let it go until she knows she loves me but if she starts getting any more panicky I'll tell soon. And so it was decided; I'd tell her. Now I just needed to figure out when.

Samantha's POV

Once we got back to Jake's house I slid off his back and walked into the house so he could phase back in privacy. The minute he walked back in the door I could tell he was giving something some serious thought. I didn't really want to interrupt him but I remembered him saying he was hungry.

"Hey Jake," I said quietly.

"Huh? Yeah?"

"What do you want for lunch?" I continued quietly.

"Um… I don't know. Just whatever is fine," he said before plopping down on the couch and resuming his brooding silence.

I wordlessly prepared some sandwiches and grabbed chips off the top of the fridge. I had to climb up onto the counter on my knees to reach them and when I turned to get down Jake was there, staring at me, barely a foot from me. I gasped and held my hand over my heart. "Don't scare me like that," I said breathlessly.

"You shouldn't do that," he said, completely ignoring my statement.

"Do what?" I asked as I recovered my breath.

"Climb on the counter, you could hurt yourself."

I rolled my eyes. "I'm not that uncoordinated plus it's only like two feet off the ground, it wouldn't hurt."

"You still shouldn't," he protested as he looped his arm around my waist and set me on the ground lightly.

I just stood there for a moment staring at him before I processed that his arm was still around my waist. I gasped and my heart rate picked up as color rushed to my face again.

"What's wrong?" he asked in sudden alarm.

"N-nothing," I stuttered pathetically as I looked down away from him.

"Sammy, please tell me," he pleaded as he used his free hand to lift my chin so I was looking at him; he had concern written all over his face.

"Well- I- um… No, it sounds silly," I refused.

He frowned. "Sammy, please just tell me."

"I don't know… I guess I just… I feel… comfortable around you, too comfortable. And I- I mean… I don't know how to react. I just… I'm just confused," I babbled senselessly as I looked anywhere but at him.

He chuckled. "Is that it?"

"Yes," I replied in confusion.

"Well that's a relief."

"Huh?" I asked incredulously.

"Sammy, it's okay to like me," he started, then he trailed off while lifting my chin to meet his soft gaze, "Cause I like you too… a lot."

My heart skipped a beat and I felt my pulse quicken and I couldn't pull my gaze away from him. I don't know how long we stood like that but it felt like hours. Finally I built up the strength to speak, "Jake… I'm not sure this is a good idea. I mean I've only known you for like four days."

"Sammy, let me just ask you one question." I nodded. "Do you acknowledge that you like me, a lot and that you don't know why or how you could?"

"Yes," I replied warily.

"I can tell you what's going on but I don't really know how you'll react. I've actually just figured it out recently; Sam confirmed it."

"What does Sam have to do with it?" I asked in confusion.

"Well it's kind of a werewolf thing…" he trailed off as he looked down at me.

"Yeah," I answered hesitantly.

"It's called imprinting. And it's less complicated than it sounds and I probably can't explain it very well but here it goes," he said then he took a deep breath. "Imprinting is like… like… Love at first sight but more absolute. When a werewolf imprints on someone it's like they're now the only thing that matters. He'll be anything she want him to be; a friend, a brother a lover as long as he is something to her. Because she is the thing that's keeping him on the ground; she has a gravitational pull that keeps him anchored to her no matter what," he continued awkwardly, afraid to look down at me. "Now Sam, Jared and Quil have all imprinted and… Now I have too." He finally looked down at me. I just stood there wide-eyed breathing a little faster than normal. He sighed and looked disappointed then he pulled his arm away from my waist and took a step back. "I'm sorry, I knew this would scare you, but I didn't want you to panic because you didn't know what was going on. So now you know what's going on and you're panicking because of it." He sighed. "I know it's weird and it's going to sound impossible but I'm willing to be anything you want me to be… including nothing, if that's what you want."

I could hear the pain in his voice and I wanted to make it stop but my mouth wouldn't work. I opened my mouth but no sound would come out. I felt cold now that he wasn't near me, I did like him but my mouth wouldn't cooperate. He misinterpreted my silence and gave a weak smile and started to walk out of the kitchen. I forced my body to move and my mouth to work finally. "Stop," I said meekly as I reached out and grabbed his hand. He stood still for a moment. "I'm sorry."

"You're sorry? What for?" he asked as he turned back.

"I understand and I'm glad you told me. And I didn't mean to give you the wrong impression with my silence; I was just stunned. You have to give me a few seconds to process that kind of information before I'm lucid again," I explained, even as I spoke I could see the pain leaving his face.

"So you aren't scared?" he asked carefully.

"Scared? No. A little disoriented? Yes, but I'll get over it. It'll just take some adjusting."

He was smiling now. "But you do want to adjust, right?" I nodded. "Whew, don't scare me like that!" he said with a sigh as he took one step back toward me and wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me into an enormous hug.

I laughed and wrapped my arms around his neck. I squeaked when he lifted me clear off the ground and set me down on the counter. Now he had both hands on either side of me on the counter. "I thought I wasn't supposed to climb on the counter," I teased as I played with his hair.

"This is different; I won't let you fall," he replied as he leaned in and kissed the base of my neck. My heart skipped a beat a chill went down my spine. He pulled back and looked at me his eyes were soft but with a subtle intensity that I couldn't ignore. I had seen looks like that before and I figured out what it meant just before his lips met mine. His kiss was gentle like he was being careful; I wrapped my arms around his neck. After what seemed like an eternity we parted. He smiled at me before kissing my forehead gently.

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**Satta: So? I totally deserve reviews for this cause it was uber long! And romance is hard for me so cranking out this much is seriously impressive! PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE REVIEW!!**


	7. Party, Party!

**A/N: So this chapter if pretty fluffy... Pretty dang cute and only one major plot relevance point but you'll have to pay attention because it's a pretty minor part in the chapter! Ha! I'm tricky like that! Anyway please R&R!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight.**

* * *

**Recap:**

_"This is different; I won't let you fall," he replied as he leaned in and kissed the base of my neck. My heart skipped a beat a chill went down my spine. He pulled back and looked at me his eyes were soft but with a subtle intensity that I couldn't ignore. I had seen looks like that before and I figured out what it meant just before his lips met mine. His kiss was gentle like he was being careful; I wrapped my arms around his neck. After what seemed like an eternity we parted. He smiled at me before kissing my forehead gently._

* * *

"What was I doing, again?" I asked as I took a deep breath.

"In all honesty I don't remember," he said with a chuckle. Then his stomach growled.

I burst out laughing. "Lunch, right!" I said through fits of laughter as I jumped off the counter and retrieved the forgotten bag of chips off the ground and placed them on the counter. "Oh, right! I finished except for the chips," I said as I shook my head.

We ate lunch with random conversation; the front door opened just as I was throwing the plates away. I looked over at Jake who didn't seem concerned at all, apparently people just walked in and out of houses here. Then Quil, Embry, Sam and Jared turned into the kitchen; that's why he wasn't concerned.

"Hey guys, what's up?" Jake asked cheerfully.

"Not much, we were just in the area and figured we'd drop by," Quil said as he through Jake a wink.

"I'm not blind Quil," I said with a chuckle.

Sam sent Jake a look I didn't quite understand and Jake nodded and smiled and in turn received a smile from the older werewolf.

"Listen, Jake, we were thinking of heading out to Port Angeles to check out this new place, you want to come? Of course, you're invited too, Sammy," Embry asked hopefully.

"I'd love to!" I answered excitedly. Jake just smiled and nodded.

"Leave around six?" Embry asked.

"Sure, sure. I've got to go find something to wear!" I announced excitedly as I ran over to my suitcase and started tearing through my clothes; subconsciously using Jake's patronizing phrase.

We had four hours until time to leave so Jake and I decided we would watch a movie. He bit his lip as he scanned over the supply of movies.

"What are you thinking?" he asked as he turned back to me.

"Um… I don't know," I replied with a shrug.

"Pick a genre and I'll pick the movie," he instructed.

"Okay… Oo! I've got a hard one, musical!"

"Ha! I have musicals! Well like two…" Jake said as he grabbed one and put it in. He sat down next to me as the commercials started to play.

"So what did you pick?"

"You'll see."

As the first scene started I knew it right away. "Moulin Rouge! I love this movie!"

"It's pretty good," Jake conceded.

After the movie I started to get ready. Jake watched me scurry around the small house, back and forth from the bathroom to my suitcase for things I had forgotten. I gathered everything I needed in the bathroom and took a shower. I put on a jean skirt and a dark green halter top along with my dark green 

and brown high heeled sandals. I towel-dried my hair and looked around the bathroom and realized I'd left my flat iron in my bag. I walked out of the bathroom and started digging through my bag; I couldn't find my flat iron anywhere in my bag. I stood up and frowned.

"What's wrong?" Jake asked as he walked out of his room in a pair of jeans and a black shirt.

"I can't find my flat iron," I said as I stuck my bottom lip out in a pout.

"So? You're hair looks good wavy," he said as he started playing with a strand of my damp hair.

I sighed. "I guess it's okay." I turned and headed back toward the bathroom, "Be back in a second." When I walked back out Jake was sitting on the couch flicking through the channels on TV. "I am now officially ready!" I announced.

"Good to know," Jake said with a tad of sarcasm.

"Wait! Not yet," I corrected as I walked over to my suitcase and pulled out a dark brown leather jacket. Jake stared at me as I put it on, "What? You don't think it's going to be cold?"

"Cold doesn't bother me."

"Got it." Then there was a knock at the door, "And I'll get that to." I opened the door and sure enough Embry was standing there at the door, I could see the rest of the guys piled into Sam's car behind him.

Someone wolf whistled and Quil yelled: "You clean up nice Sammy!" There were other shouts that resembled that and "Oh yeah Sammy!" Then Jake stepped into the doorframe behind me and the comments ceased. I laughed and struck a pose and everyone burst out into laughter and whistles, even Jake who kept his arm wrapped around my waist possessively.

We got to Port Angeles almost two hours later and I was pleased to find out the place we were checking out was a club.

"This is my kind of place!" I shouted over the music.

"You better watch out for her, Jake, she's a creature of the night," Quil joked, jabbing Jake in the ribs playfully.

"Doesn't 'creature of the night' refer to vampires?" I asked innocently and everyone went silent. "Got it. Vampires are an off limit subject."

The tension soon melted away and I stood there for a while staring longingly at the dance floor and after a moment I decided to sneak away. "I have to go to the bathroom," I announced as I headed off toward the bathroom only to slip into the crowd of dancing bodies.

Jacob's POV

"Why do girls always feel the need to announce those kinds of things?" I muttered.

"Maybe to serve as an alibi," Quil suggested.

"What are you talking about Quil?" I asked as I turned toward my friend.

"She isn't going to the bathroom, she's dancing," Quil said as he pointed out at the dance floor.

"Sure, sure. Right Quil."

"Well now it looks like she's flirting."

"What?" I asked as I finally turned all the way around. Quil was pointing over to a corner of the room where some guy was talking to Sammy. She was smiling and talking back. I felt like walking over and punching the guy in the nose for talking to her. I pushed away from the counter and started to walk over when Sam caught my arm.

"Wait and see what happens," Sam said as he directed my attention back where the guy was talking to Sammy.

The guy said something and Sammy gave him a fake smile and wacked the drink out of his hand so that it spilled all over him. He got angry and started yelling, she flicked him off and started to walk away but the guy caught her arm and started yelling again. This time she smiled a true smile and stepped on his foot sending him stumbling backward. She turned and looked toward me. She just barely met my gaze before she blushed and started walking back toward me.

Samantha's POV

I wondered how long Jake had been watching that little exchange as I cut through the crowd of dancing people. I just prayed that he wasn't the over reactive jealous type. I walked up and offered a meek smile before leaning against the counter.

"Sammy?"

I looked up involuntarily at the sound of my name directly into Jake's eyes. "Yeah Jake?"

"Why didn't you let me beat the guy up?" he asked lightly; we both laughed.

"You might get your chance, Jake, I think he's looking for her," Jared said as he leaned toward Jake.

"Wait, I've got an idea. Let me handle this until I give the signal, then all of you come up, okay?" I said as I stepped away from the counter to lean against the railing overlooking the dance floor.

"What's the signal?" Jake asked.

"Oh, you'll know it."

Just as Jared said the guy walked up and tapped me on the shoulder; he had three of his friends with him. They were pretty good sized guys, none under six foot would be my guess; all I knew was that they towered over me.

"Hey," the guy snapped as he yanked my arm around.

"What do you want?"

"I want a little compensation for what you did to me earlier."

"I don't apologize for self defense," I said smoothly with a shrug.

"Oh really? Well I got a problem with that," the guy said as he let me go and shoved me into the railing.

I could see Jake seething behind him against the counter. "And I've got a problem with you," I shot back as I stepped forward and crossed my arms over my chest.

"What're you going to do about, little girl?" he asked condescendingly.

"Nothing. I'm not going to do anything," I said as I gave a short nod and all of the La Push gang pushed away from the counter.

"That would be my job," Jake said as he walked around them and put his arm around my waist and pulled me against him.

I smirked at the guy and his friends who suddenly didn't look so big with Paul and Jared standing behind them. "Did I mention that I had a boyfriend and a few good friends who all happen to be much stronger than you?"

He blanched and looked for an escape. "I believe you owe my girlfriend an apology," Jake said and Jared and Paul cracked there knuckles in unison.

"S-sorry," the guys stuttered. Paul and Jared stepped apart and let the guys run out before moving back to their original places and high fiving.

"That was hilarious!" Quil shouted through laughter.

"You play the part of a scheming temptress very well Sammy," Paul commented as he high fived me.

"Thank you, thank you. I do, don't I?" I said with a laugh. I was still facing Jake with one arm around his waist and one hand resting against his feverish chest; it was then I realized just how well we fit together, even physically, it was like our bodies were made to fit together.

"And Jake's got the bad boy thing nailed, don't you, Jake?" Quil asked as he patted Jake on the back.

"Sure, sure. He didn't hurt you, did he Sammy?" Jake asked as he looked down at me.

"No, I'm fine."

"See Jake you just killed the bad boy image," Quil teased, "You were supposed to just grab her and kiss her."

"Oh shut up, Quil," Jake said with a lopsided smile as he whacked Quil over the head and bent over and kissed me lightly.

"Oh you've really killed it now," Quil continued.

"Quil," Jake and I warned in unison.

"Shutting up," Quil said as he raised his hands in surrender.

Everyone laughed and started talking; Jake kept his arm wrapped around my waist protectively the entire time. "So," I started, "When do we dance?" My question seemed to catch all of them off guard because they all stopped talking and looked at me. "Don't tell me you guys don't dance."

"Do we look like we can dance?" Embry said gesturing to his size.

"No, but you also don't look like you could gracefully weave in and out of dense forest but you can," I countered.

"Damn, she's got us there," Quil said as he snapped his fingers.

"Don't tell me you guys are just afraid to dance," I retorted tauntingly.

"I'd be willing to dance with you," Quil said with a smirk, "You know if no one else will." He sent a teasing glance at Jake.

I looked up at him and smiled. "Is the big bad wolf afraid of some fun," I teased as I poked his chest.

"No," he insisted but I could see the hesitation in his eyes, "Maybe." There was more silence. "I don't know how to dance. Okay? Now stop giving me that look," he admitted.

I chuckled. "It's not hard if you've got any sort of natural rhythm at all. All you do is find a beat and move to it," I assured him. He looked doubtful; I sniffled a bit and stuck out my lower lip a little. "Please, for me?" I pleaded with my best puppy-dog pout.

"Oh that is a low blow; how am I supposed to say no to that face?" Jake asked as he tried to look away. Then he steeled himself and turned back with a firm resolve.

"Oh well, I guess I could just go dance with someone else," I said as I detached myself from him and started to walk away.

"Fine, I'll dance with you. But don't laugh at me," he conceded as he caught my hand.

I turned around with a smirk playing across my features. "I won't."

True to his word he danced with me and true to his word he had no idea what he was doing. He was trying too hard; that was his problem. I turned to him with a grin on my face.

"You promised not to laugh," he pointed out.

"You're trying too hard, loosen up. You'll get it," I said as I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him delicately. "You're supposed to have fun."

After a few songs he really started to get the hang of it; he had an impressive natural grace for someone his size. We laughed and danced; it was very natural kind of fun, so effortless. It was going so well, too well for my luck. Suddenly Jake perked up and his eyes darted around the room.

"Jake, what's wrong?" I asked in alarm.

"Vampire."

"Here?" I gasped out.

He wrapped his arm around my waist and led me through the crowd over to where Sam and the other guys were acting the same way.

"It's familiar," Sam said before Jake had even voiced his question.

I shuddered subconsciously against Jake's side. He looked down at me with a soft expression. "It's alright," he assured me, "Nothing is going to happen to you."

"I think I found the culprits," Quil said as he nodded toward the entrance of the club.

I looked over but couldn't see through the large crowd so I looked up at Jake for some sort of information.

"It's just Alice and Edward with Bella, no danger," Sam said with a nod.

I sighed and relaxed against Jake. "So they come to clubs and stuff too? Just like regular humans?" I asked out of curiosity.

"Apparently," Embry answered.

"No doubt they know we're here just as much as we know they are," Jake said, his jaw stiff.

"Jake," I whispered as my hand settled on his chest.

"Don't worry sweetheart, they're not going to hurt you," Jake promised as he pulled me closer.

"I know. I'm not worried about it," I said quietly. "We aren't going to let a couple of vampires ruin our good time, are we?" I asked a little louder, talking to the whole group. They all stared at me incredulously. "You said it yourself; we're not in any danger. So why let them have all the fun? Plus we were here first, we shouldn't be forced to leave just because they decided to party too," I insisted; they continued to stare at me. "Whatever, I don't know about y'all but I'm going to go dance." And I started to walk away.

"Oh no, you don't," Jake said as he caught my hand and pulled me back.

"Jake, for your own good, let go of my hand," I said with quiet severity.

"What are you going to do if I don't, Sammy? We both know I'm a lot stronger than you," Jake pointed out.

"I'll throw an extremely loud and horrible hissy fit, that's what I'll do. You wouldn't want everyone to think I'm being held against my will, would you?" I countered; he let go of my hand with a sigh. "That's what I thought." Then I walked out into the crowd of dancing bodies.

Jacob's POV

"That was harsh," Quil muttered after Sammy had walked off.

I was just trying to protect her. I didn't think I deserved to be treated like that. One part of me was telling me to go after her and forcibly drag her out of the club and take her home but the other part was telling me to let her go and have fun. I hated it when I had a choice. It made it so much harder. I looked up and couldn't see Sammy in the crowd of people and that worried me; what worried me more was that I couldn't see the Cullens and Bella.

"Sam, where'd the bloodsuckers go?" I asked as I looked over at him.

"Far corner, not quite to the wall though," he answered as he nodded in their direction.

Sure enough there they were, swaying to the music just like everyone else. But I noticed Bella wasn't with them; how odd.

"Uh-oh Jake, you might have to do some damage control," Quil teased as he pointed over to a nearby booth where Bella and Sammy were talking casually.

"Who cares? As long as she's not near the leeches I don't care," I answered and of course just my luck, Bella and Sammy both got up and walked over to where Alice and Edward were dancing. "Well shit," I muttered.

Samantha's POV

"Hey, Edward, Alice, this is Sammy, Jake's girlfriend, remember?" Bella introduced me as we walked up then she stood next to Edward and he wrapped his arm around her waist protectively.

"Yeah, I remember," Edward said pleasantly, "Nice to see you, Sammy."

"I never met you officially, so nice to meet you, I'm Alice," Alice said brightly as she shook my hand; she was very bubbly, not what I would expect from a vampire.

"Likewise," I replied with a smile.

"So, Jasper was really impressed with you today," Alice said with an air of mischief.

"Really?" I asked.

"Not that he'd ever say it out loud," Edward said with a chuckle.

"I could just tell," Alice said, discrediting Edward's statement. I laughed. "I hope Jacob hasn't been telling you bad things about us."

"Well…"

"Okay, then I hope you haven't believed him."

"Nope, he's prejudiced. I'm neutral; you guys haven't done anything to get on my bad side. Well except Emmet," I muttered the last part almost inaudibly.

"What'd Emmet do this time?" Edward asked with a sigh.

"He gave me a bruise, see?" I aid as I showed them the bruise forming on the back of my neck.

Alice gasped.

"Alice, chill, I don't really hold it against him," I said with a chuckle.

"He wasn't supposed to inflict any damage at all, that was the deal," Edward stated for the benefit of my confusion.

"What deal?" Bella and I asked at the same time.

"The treaty was somewhat suspended while we were training you but the deal was if you or Bella were hurt in any way, the deal was off and that would mean a skirmish with the werewolves," Edward explained. "Has Jacob seen that bruise?"

"No."

"Don't let him unless you want a war."

"You got it, not a word," I said as I pretended to zip my lips.

There was a pause. "So… mind if I ask a few really stupid questions?"

"Not at all," Alice said with a smile.

"Do you guys burn in sunlight?"

"Myth."

"Do garlic, crosses, stakes or silver do anything to you?"

"Myths."

"Do you turn into bats?"

"Myth."

"Do you not show up in mirrors?"

"Myth."

"Do you not show up on film?"

"Myth."

"Okay now I'm done," I said as I took a deep breath.

"They aren't stupid questions, just stereotypical questions," Alice said cheerfully.

"Thanks."

"Wolfboy doesn't seem too happy that you're over here," Alice said as she looked over my shoulder.

"In fact he's not. He was contemplating coming over here and dragging you back home but he decided against it because you're be angry with him," Edward added.

"Damn right I would be," I replied.

"You have no idea how desperately he wants to protect you, Sammy. It's touching, really, even for a dog."

"Yep, he's my big puppy. I better head back over so he doesn't give himself a heart attack," I said with a sigh as I waved and turned to leave, "See you on Wednesday!"

"You are so overprotective," I said as I walked back over to Jake, there was no hostility in my voice, just good humor.

"Well I can't help it. My distrust is a born instinct," Jake countered as he caught my wrist and pulled me toward him.

He was looking me up and down; I cocked an eyebrow. "Searching for any damage?" I asked with a chuckle.

"Maybe."

"There isn't any."

"Can never be too sure," he muttered without making eye contact.

"Jake, I'm fine, trust me," I said as I tilted my head to make eye contact.

"Fine, fine," he conceded as he finally looked into my eyes. "I'll let the inspection slide this once."

"Is this going to happen every time I go somewhere without you?" I asked facetiously.

"Depends on who else you're with," he replied as he wrapped his arm around my waist.

"This place is starting to reek of leech, you guys wanna head out?" Paul said as he waved his hand in front of his face.

"I don't mind a bit," Quil said, already heading for the door.

"Fine by me," Jake said with a shrug then he looked down at me.

I yawned in exaggeration. "I'm beat; let's go home so I can sleep."

"With who?" Quil joked under his breath. I reached over and socked him in the arm and Jake slapped him upside the head. "Okay, okay! I was just kidding!"

Everyone laughed and we piled into Sam's truck. The ride was interesting to say the least. Just like one way down I had to sit on Jake's lap and there still wasn't room for everyone in the cab so Paul and Jared sat in the bed of the truck. Quil spent most of the time commenting on the fact that I still smelled like leech. In all honesty by the time we pulled up to Jake's house I was nearly asleep.

"Whoa, in case you didn't remember Sammy, there's a step there," Jake said as he caught me as I stumbled over the half step into the house.

"Jake," Billy called from the living room.

"Coming Dad," Jake called back as he led me into the living room where I collapsed on the couch.

"Jake, she isn't drunk, is she?" Billy asked in a scolding tone.

"No, just really, really tired," Jake said as he picked up my legs, sat down then put my legs in his lap.

"Alright, just had to make sure," Billy said as he wheeled into his bedroom, "Night Jake, night Sammy."

I groaned in reply. "Night Dad," Jake called after him. "Sammy?"

I groaned again.

"Sammy," he tried again.

This time I managed a whole word. "What?"

"Why don't you go change so you aren't sleeping in those clothes," he suggested quietly.

I groaned and slid off the couch and grabbed my pajamas and walked into the bathroom. I minute later I emerged, clad in my amazing flannel pajama pants and tank top. My eyes were hardly open so when I sat down and the couch grunted I was very surprised.

"Hon, you're sitting on my stomach," Jake said.

"Sorry," I muttered and stood up. "Warning, I'm going to sit down again." And when I did the couch didn't grunt. Arms wrapped around my waist and I felt warm breath on my shoulder then he kissed the base of my neck. "Jake, I'm tired," I complained lightly.

"So go to sleep," he said against my neck.

"If you keep doing that I'm going to catch my second wind and be up until three," I said as I turned my head toward him. He looked almost too pitiful, his head was declined and he was looking at my back and he was tracing circles on my shoulder. "Oh quit it, don't look so disappointed. Are you trying to make me feel guilty?"

"No," he mumbled. I swear he was whimpering too.

"Yes you are," I contradicted, "And it's working." Then he looked up and unleashed the full force of his puppy dog eyes on me. "Oh, you are not playing fair!" I complained but then turned and kissed him lightly.

He smiled. "I always win."

"You play dirty though," I said as I smiled at him through my bangs.

"Never claimed to play fair," he said as he pulled me into his lap.

I rested my head on his chest and the steady beat of his heart started to lull me to sleep. "You planned this," I accused drowsily.

"You bet I did," he murmured as he kissed the top of my head. "I love you Sammy."

"I love you too, Jake," I mumbled just before I drifted off to sleep.

* * *

**Satta: So? Thoughts? I know it was fluff but there were one or two things in there of importance... I thought after all the drama some fluff was well deserved... Let me know! REVIEW!!**


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